A Cricket Cazy Lonely Indian In Africa & Chakde India!!!
A moment of glory from my memory lane... It wasn’t a holiday on Monday the 24th Sept 07 and I was on a client assignment in Botswana, Africa! Nevertheless, I was free from client…and few of my local friends (my new Indian friend, my African driver, and 2 house maids) joined the show. The perfect finale! An India-Pak cricket match can never disappoint. Never ever.
And this was the first time India were meeting Pakistan in a World Championship final since 1985 and it just couldn't be dull. It being dull would mean going against the laws of nature. Time went by till it was 1.00 pm local till the biggest surprise of the day…the National Anthem was sung! We all stood up and got obliged with patriotism and my African friends were equally thrilled.
The match started. I sat on the same place where I have been sitting during all other matches that India had won and simultaneously started working on my presentation. The moment I shut down the laptop…BANG! Youshuf Pathan got out. So I switched it on again! But India didn’t recover at all! 157 was not simply enough to convince my stake for a win against the Pakies! I had switched off from work.
In African Region, you won’t find any STAR CRICKET channel. Here they have Super Sports channel which telecasts the T20 WC. But all thanks to the commentators Tony Graig & Mangwa! Both of them had given the verdict. India will lay down one billion people again as always and the Pakies would win!!!
However, we had our strategies formed in the interval as how India should fight back (only it was never heard by the team though) and managed to settle in the 2nd innings. 1st over of Shtreesanth…20 runs!!! We were nervous and disheartened. My African guests were sitting with patience. I switched on the Laptop…BANG. One wicket!
By now I was convinced that it’s my laptop & work which actually helping to take wickets! Ha ha ha. O’ boy, wickets after wickets were falling handsomely. And SRK appeared cheering India on screen.
Like SRK’s Chak De India spirit, India was cruising away for a disappointingly unexciting and easy victory, the Gods sent in Misbah-Ul-Haq and Sohail Tanvir to re-arrange things as they are meant to be.
The DJ then played the song “Chak’de O’ Chka’de India!”
In the very next over…Bang Bang & Bang…3 sixes…Man, quite a shock they both (Misbah & Sohail) gave as if they were expecting the DJ to mix a song called “Chakde Pakistan”!!!!!
The fire crackers I had bought were getting wet in my despair! Still, I was working on my laptop!!! (Don’t blame me for my extreme radicalism of superstitious belief!!!) From a hopeless 77-6 when they lost Afridi to getting as close as one boundary away from victory, it was nerve wrangling to watch Pakistan's sudden revival. Pakistan suddenly needed just 6 runs of 4 balls.
My friend was crazily & loudly praying…Oh God…Hey Tirupati Babba…we need a victory. On screen the Pakistani Manager was also praying!!! And then came the ball from Joginder that Misbah-ul-haq scooped up to send it over and above short fine leg. The camera panned to show the ball in the air. Every Indian was only too aware of fine-leg being inside the 30 yard circle and for a few moments I felt unparalleled despair.
But the fairy tale story had to have a fair-tale ending. The ball came down. It had not gone beyond short fine-leg and Sreesanth had the ball in his hands. Victory!!!!!Wow! What a moment! Only the second time India have been crowned world-champions and that too so much drama preceding the moment. It's 1983 all over again. Maybe even better. Dhoni & Co had really made us become mad!
Me & my friend were dancing…! The football crazy African friends in this colony were already known what cricket is all about when fire crackers were blistering over sky!!!
And all thanks to Kingfisher…the evening was in high voltage Party mood…THE CLIENT JOINED US TO CELEBRATE…we had a reason to celebrate!
Far away from home, I was definitely missing everyone...but as lonely as one could expect in wosrt conditions, I was not mine among strangers...still I was proud to feel who I am...."I am an Indian!!!"
And this was the first time India were meeting Pakistan in a World Championship final since 1985 and it just couldn't be dull. It being dull would mean going against the laws of nature. Time went by till it was 1.00 pm local till the biggest surprise of the day…the National Anthem was sung! We all stood up and got obliged with patriotism and my African friends were equally thrilled.
The match started. I sat on the same place where I have been sitting during all other matches that India had won and simultaneously started working on my presentation. The moment I shut down the laptop…BANG! Youshuf Pathan got out. So I switched it on again! But India didn’t recover at all! 157 was not simply enough to convince my stake for a win against the Pakies! I had switched off from work.
In African Region, you won’t find any STAR CRICKET channel. Here they have Super Sports channel which telecasts the T20 WC. But all thanks to the commentators Tony Graig & Mangwa! Both of them had given the verdict. India will lay down one billion people again as always and the Pakies would win!!!
However, we had our strategies formed in the interval as how India should fight back (only it was never heard by the team though) and managed to settle in the 2nd innings. 1st over of Shtreesanth…20 runs!!! We were nervous and disheartened. My African guests were sitting with patience. I switched on the Laptop…BANG. One wicket!
By now I was convinced that it’s my laptop & work which actually helping to take wickets! Ha ha ha. O’ boy, wickets after wickets were falling handsomely. And SRK appeared cheering India on screen.
Like SRK’s Chak De India spirit, India was cruising away for a disappointingly unexciting and easy victory, the Gods sent in Misbah-Ul-Haq and Sohail Tanvir to re-arrange things as they are meant to be.
The DJ then played the song “Chak’de O’ Chka’de India!”
In the very next over…Bang Bang & Bang…3 sixes…Man, quite a shock they both (Misbah & Sohail) gave as if they were expecting the DJ to mix a song called “Chakde Pakistan”!!!!!
The fire crackers I had bought were getting wet in my despair! Still, I was working on my laptop!!! (Don’t blame me for my extreme radicalism of superstitious belief!!!) From a hopeless 77-6 when they lost Afridi to getting as close as one boundary away from victory, it was nerve wrangling to watch Pakistan's sudden revival. Pakistan suddenly needed just 6 runs of 4 balls.
My friend was crazily & loudly praying…Oh God…Hey Tirupati Babba…we need a victory. On screen the Pakistani Manager was also praying!!! And then came the ball from Joginder that Misbah-ul-haq scooped up to send it over and above short fine leg. The camera panned to show the ball in the air. Every Indian was only too aware of fine-leg being inside the 30 yard circle and for a few moments I felt unparalleled despair.
But the fairy tale story had to have a fair-tale ending. The ball came down. It had not gone beyond short fine-leg and Sreesanth had the ball in his hands. Victory!!!!!Wow! What a moment! Only the second time India have been crowned world-champions and that too so much drama preceding the moment. It's 1983 all over again. Maybe even better. Dhoni & Co had really made us become mad!
Me & my friend were dancing…! The football crazy African friends in this colony were already known what cricket is all about when fire crackers were blistering over sky!!!
And all thanks to Kingfisher…the evening was in high voltage Party mood…THE CLIENT JOINED US TO CELEBRATE…we had a reason to celebrate!
Far away from home, I was definitely missing everyone...but as lonely as one could expect in wosrt conditions, I was not mine among strangers...still I was proud to feel who I am...."I am an Indian!!!"
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